Based upon senior living industry research, it takes on average 20-25 or more age- and income-qualified leads to fill one independent living unit, and 10-15 to fill one assisted living unit. In order to feel secure about gaining and maintaining 95%+ occupancy for your senior living community, it is essential to have a lead base that has 20-25 times the number of vacant units at your community.

To do so, you need to continuously work to bring seniors into your community, and to reach out regularly to your lead base.

In order to generate leads, it is helpful to bring the seniors to your community for in-reach programs, whether fun activities or educational programs. By having a high volume of seniors coming into your community, you give them a chance to see your building and to become comfortable with the environment, and you give your staff a chance to capture new leads.

It also makes sense to celebrate “milestones” at your community, and to throw parties accordingly to bring seniors in: for example, Construction Progress Parties for a new community, a Grand Opening for a community that is just opening, and periodic Open Houses to showcase your amenities and grounds. These should be planned well in advance; marketed through direct mail, phone follow-up, advertising and more; and feature nice details like delicious hors d’oeuvres, wine, and live music.

Many seniors will happily come for an afternoon or early evening event featuring free entertainment, food and wine, and you can use this opportunity to give a sales presentation by your staff to educate the prospects about the many benefits of choosing your community. It’s also a great opportunity to provide tours of apartment units, whether a model apartment while your community is under construction, or an actual resident’s apartment, depending on what is available to show.

An outside marketing consulting firm can be helpful here as well to plan, market and present educational topics with top-notch speakers to educate seniors on the latest news of interest to them. Possible topics could range from how to enhance your health status, to cutting the cost of living during retirement years, to how to increase your retirement income.

Build Your Relationships with Referral Parties

You can also combine consumer and referral party research with marketing opportunities to build your lead base. For example, host sales traffic programs that combine telephone survey research with recruitment of age- and income-qualified prospects to attend presentations held on-site on relevant consumer topics such as “The Future of Medicare and How To Control Your Personal Health Care Costs.”

You can invite referral parties to your community for an educational program or to get their opinions on a new service you are offering (for example, an Alzheimer’s wing or brain training software). Provide them with a free lunch or breakfast, and keep them in the loop as your community grows! Building solid relationships with referral parties translates into more leads.

How to Keep Your Leads Coming Back for More!

Once you have started to generate a solid lead base, you will want to continue to invite those leads to programs at your community in order to help convert them into depositors and future residents.

Here are a few proven strategies to do just that:

Applying proven multi-level marketing techniques to work “in-depth” to generate leads from your residents and family members.

Generating lists of friends and former neighbors from residents who don’t want their friends to miss out on interesting, exciting and informative events and programs at your senior living community.

Resident referral programs.

Sales traffic programs for family, friends and community members of seniors on topics such as “How to Prevent and Avoid Medical Errors” and “The Best Health Care and Personal Care Options for An Elderly Parent or Relative.”

Sales traffic programs aimed at existing lead base on topics such as “How to Cut Your Cost of Living and Increase Your Retirement Income” and “How to Protect Yourself Against Consumer Fraud and Identity Theft.”

Groups and one-on-one presentations with prospects regarding the cost of staying in their homes versus moving into your retirement community.

For qualified veterans and their spouses, sales traffic programs on “Aid and Attendance Pensions.”

“Homeowner Specials”

“Downsizing” seminars delivered by a well-known, established professional specializing in senior living in your market area.

Continue to find creative approaches to bring age- and income-qualified seniors prospects into your community, and to build an ongoing relationship with them. Building your lead base will help to increase your odds of achieving your occupancy goals more rapidly and keeping your community fully occupied.